


because of you

by robin_writes



Category: Until Dawn (Video Game)
Genre: Breakfast in Bed, Chris isn’t around much, Dr Hill is a jackass, F/M, Josh has awful nightmares and screams in his sleep, Josh needs help, Josh’s parents are dicks, Sam has trouble sleeping after the disappearances, Sam is always there for him, Sam’s mom is so nice, Sleep, buffet fit for a kingdom, everything after Hannah and Beth’s disappearance is different, he can’t pay for anything, he doesn’t have a job, he lives alone, no prank, so many awkward moments I don’t think my heart can take it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-17
Updated: 2016-04-17
Packaged: 2018-06-02 20:50:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,144
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6581632
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/robin_writes/pseuds/robin_writes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the deaths of Hannah and Beth, Josh ain’t doing so good. His parents have left him in their house while they bought a new one, and refuse to pay for anything except his medical bills in the hope that he becomes normal. Dr Hill suggests opening up to someone, and for Josh, that person is Sam. She stays with him for a while until he gets an unsettling phone call.</p>
            </blockquote>





	because of you

After his sisters’ death, Josh was a recluse, a hermit, a mental-case. His parents bought a new house, they couldn’t bare the notion that Hannah and Beth used to sleep just meters from where they slept, or ate in the same area they ate. They had to get out. The nice, warm and welcoming house that the Washington kids grew up in was now home to the terrifying realization that both of their daughters were dead and were never coming back. The family had eventually accepted the deaths as deaths because you don’t come back from being missing for weeks on top of a mountain, it just doesn’t happen. Josh stayed in the house though, because it was the only thing holding the last thread of his sanity together. That he could walk into Beth’s bedroom with Hannah’s turquoise blanket and just immerse himself in the memories, the good ones, and not have to face the horrible delusions that lay in wait for him outside the door. To be quite honest, the only reason that Josh didn’t live entirely out of Hannah and Beth’s bedrooms was that he didn't want to disturb the environment too much. The less he was in there, the longer he could continue to outlive his hallucinations. He had a psychiatrist, of course, Dr A J Hill. The initials, Josh had decided, stood for Asshole and Jackass. The kind doctor had found out that Josh had stopped taking his meds, not to mention that Josh hadn’t even started taking the new ones. He was trying something new, some would call it a cleanse, Josh called it not becoming a slave to society. He didn’t want to be a submissive doing whatever the Hell the higher-ups wanted, like taking his meds. Dr Hill also suggested that Josh pick a friend, one that he liked the most and one he could trust, and tell them everything. Pour his heart out to them, so that if he was ever in a situation where he needed help, he had someone that he immediately knew he could trust. Which brings us back to the present.

Josh stared blankly up at the ceiling of his bedroom. He agreed, for once, with Dr Hill that it would be handy having someone that he could trust. But who? He sighed and grabbed a pad and pen, writing a list of his friend’s names. Chris, Ashley, Mike, Jessica, Matt, Emily, Sam. Sam. Sam was so good to him after his sisters went missing. She made him feel better and not just when he was at his lowest, all the time. She was his ray of sunshine constantly. She kept him calm and collected, kept him on his antidepressants, woke him up every morning, kept him out of bed, and then saw to it that he was in bed at night. She was his saving grace. It would be only fair that he trust her. He circled her name and then threw the pad on his desk. The doctor had asked for everything potentially dangerous to be removed from the house if Josh was to live on his own. That meant no pencils, because they need sharpeners and you can remove the blade. No hunting guns, no pills other than the prescribed ones, no knives, no ropes, no razors that can cause significant damage. Josh doesn’t see the point in all of that, if he wanted to kill himself he would find a way, the subway was fairly close. He didn’t but if he did.

How could he tell her everything without scaring her away? He was so messed up if he even told her half he would never see her again. He turned in his chair to see Dr Hill. No, not Dr Hill, fake Dr Hill. “Be brave Joshua. Take the chance.”  
“How?”  
“Call her up, ask her to come over, offer her a drink, and start from the beginning.”  
“It’s that simple?”  
“It’s that simple.” He vanished as quick as he appeared. Josh picked up his phone from his bed were he had left it. He scrolled through his contact list. Ashley… Chris… Emily… George… Jessica… Matt… Mike… Peter… Sam. Bingo. He clicked on her name and clicked the phone button. It rang for a moment and then she picked up.  
“Hello? Josh?” Sam called.  
“Uhh..” He panicked and hung up. “Fuck. Fuck! I’m useless.” He put his head in his hands and muttered to himself. “Why do I always fuck up?’ He sighed. All of a sudden, his phone rang. It was Sam, she tried calling back. After a moments hesitation, he picked up.  
“Hey, Josh? You there?”  
“Yeah.”  
“What’s up buddy?” His heart crushed. Friend-zoned.  
“Are you free? I mean, can you come over? To my place. Now?” He was so awkward, he could barely get a sentence out without stumbling over his words.  
“Haha, yeah I’ll be over in a few. And by the way, I’m never free. I’m hella expensive.” She chuckled and then hung up. Josh made his way into the bathroom and splashed some water on his face.  
“Come on Washington, this is the first good advice Hill’s given you, you better make use of it.” He gave himself a pep talk and then put his phone on charge. 

It was a good five minutes before there was a knock at the door. Josh made his way downstairs and opened the door to find Sam. She was wearing a red plaid dress, black leggings and a biker jacket. She looked amazing, and he was in his pajamas. Josh shook his head. “Gotta focus.”  
“Hmm?” Sam wondered.  
“Would you like a drink?” He asked.  
“Uh, sure. I’ll take a soda.” Josh stood there for a while. “Josh?”  
“Oh, yeah. Right. You don’t just offer, you get too.” He mumbled to himself.  
“Hey, are you alright? You seem… off.” Sam said as Josh disappeared into the kitchen to get her a soda.  
“Never better. No that’s a lie. I don’t want to lie anymore. I have to tell the truth.” He was scaring Sam a little. “Come upstairs. I need to tell you something.” He walked upstairs, not checking if she was behind him. They went to his bedroom where he sat on his desk chair and Sam sat on his bed, gently moving a large book ‘The Wendigo’ by Algernon Blackwood onto the desk. “After Hannah and Beth’s disappearance, I felt really alone. And isolated.” Sam took her jacket off. Josh breathed. “I was in a bad place, but there you were to make any place better. You took care of me. My parents left me, abandoned me but you stood by my side. You were there for me when I was so sad that I felt like I was drowning. You know that I was depressed when I was younger,” Sam nodded. “well, my psychiatrist, Dr Hill, suggested that I pick someone I can depend on. Someone I can trust completely and utterly. I chose you.”  
“What about Chris?”  
“He hasn’t been around so much these days.”  
“So what did Dr Hill want me to do?”  
“Listen. He told me I should start from the beginning. But I’m warning you, this might not be entirely what you’re expecting.”  
“Okay.” Sam took a sip of her drink and then placed it back on the desk.  
“All through my childhood I’ve been different. I get angry easily, I forget things, I live surrounded by darkness. I’m surprised that my parents kept it all under the rug as long as they did, because I know they’ve been scared of me my whole life. I hear things sometimes?” The way he said it made it sound more like a question. “Voices. I hear voices. Hannah and Beth.”  
“That’s understandable, with what happened last year.”  
“And animals sometimes. There’s this bird that likes to sit on my window sill sometimes and likes salami. I know that because he told me. I see my psychiatrist a lot too. He’s a dick. Anyway, I need to start from the beginning, I’m getting off track. When I was ten, I did something stupid. My dad had a barrel of prop guns next to the dining room table. He had set them up for someone to collect that day. We were putting on the cowboy play at school. It was a prop rehearsal, and I didn’t have a gun. I thought that I would be big man on campus if I took one of my father’s very realistic fake guns. So I took one from the top of the barrel, put the safety on and put it in the waistband of my school trousers. Later at the rehearsal when Miss Martin asked for our positions, I pulled out the gun. She was slightly but knew my father is a big time film guy and so didn’t say anything. When it came to my turn to hold a kid a gunpoint and shoot, I did. The gun was real, it just had blanks. I was in seclusion until they called my parents, a behavioral therapist, the head teacher and a doctor. I was put on Fluoxetine for four years. When I was thirteen, I went into school as usual but had to skip out on the first class. I had a banging headache and I wanted to throw up. So I sat in the bathroom for ages, head over the toilet bowl, crying. Every change in light or movement of noise from down the hall sent my head spinning. I took some Ibuprofen but apparently you’re not meant to do that so I ended up border-line psychotic for the day, stopping to throw up in the bushes a few times. They thought I OD’d and made me change shrink. They changed my pills to Duloxetine until they stopped working. Eventually you build up a tolerance for everything. You have to understand, my delusions are sometimes so bad that I can’t tell what’s real and what’s not real. Dr Hill helps there because he refuses to see me anywhere but his office. That way I know that if I’m talking to him somewhere else, it’s not real. My doctors wanted for me to take my meds so badly I agreed. So I started self-medicating. My parent’s have paid thousands trying to make me right, but it’s just taken a turn for the worst. My mom cant stand to be in the same room as me, my dad won’t pick up when I call, they blame me. Not just for Hannah and Beth’s disappearances, but for being sick. They think that it’s my fault that I’m not normal. I used to think that too, but Dr North, my doctor before Dr Hill, explained it too me. Anything that I can’t help is not my fault. If I’m sick and i can’t do anything about it, it’s their fault. Every time my father doesn’t answer the phone, he is making a conscious decision to not be in my life. Every time my mother leaves a room I’m in, she is making the conscious decision to stay away from me. They act like I’m a cancer that they need to avoid, like I’m some kind of freak that needs to be locked up in this house. When I told them that I was staying here and that they were going to continue owning this house, you know what my mother said? ‘Oh thank God.’ And sighed in relief. They can’t stand me any more Sam. I could have done something. I could have not drank that day, so I wouldn’t have been passed out on the counter. I could have grabbed Hannah before she ran out the door. I could have followed her and gone with Beth. But because I had too much to drink, I was unconscious when I could have done something. I shouldn’t even have been drinking. Drink and medication does not go well together. It was my fault.” He started crying. “It was all my fault.” Sam pulled him onto the bed and into her arms. He cried onto her shoulder. 

She waited for a while, for him to stop crying. It was maybe half an hour before he collected himself. “Do you want me to stay here tonight? My parents won’t mind.” He nodded. “Will you be alright for ten minutes while I go get some stuff?” He nodded again. Sam went downstairs and back home. When she walked through the front door, she saw her mom in the kitchen making lunch. “Mom?”  
“Yes, honey?” She stopped buttering the bread.  
“I’m going to stay with Josh for a few days. He’s a little fragile at the moment.”  
“I can see.” Her mom indicated the shoulder of her dress which was wet from Josh’s tears.  
“Would it be okay if I took some sandwiches with me, I don’t think he’s eaten since yesterday?”  
“Of course, while you go get some clothes, I’ll make you some ham sandwiches.” Josh’s favorite. She remembered. Sam nodded thanks and went upstairs. She pulled out a small holdall bag and threw a few outfits and pajamas in, as well as her laptop, phone charger, makeup bag, hairbrush and a couple of good movies. Not scary ones though, with josh’s delusions that could have a horrifying turn. She walked into the bathroom and opened the medicine cabinet and grabbed a pot of sleeping pills. Sam didn’t bother changing her dress just in case Josh felt like crying again, and instead dried it off with a paper towel. When she went downstairs, there was a small box full of sandwiches and a larger box full of defrosted chicken and frozen veg. “I figured that Josh probably doesn’t go grocery shopping that often.” Her mom said.  
“Yeah, thanks mom.” Sam put the two boxes in her bag and opened a cupboard, taking a bag of toffee popcorn. “See you in a few days.”  
“Here’s some money for food, and if you need to borrow the car, come back and the keys are in the bowl. I love you, sweetheart.”  
“I love you too.” They had gotten in a habit of saying ‘I love you’ any time one of them left, it was just in case something bad happened to one of them, it started just after Hannah and Beth went missing. Her mom wouldn’t even let her leave if they were in the middle of a fight which could be really annoying, but she meant well. 

Sam left for Josh’s house. It was really handy that they lived so close to each other, Sam figured that it was a part of the reason Josh never left. The new Washington house was two and a half hours away from all of his friends. Currently, it is only an hour, or a five minute walk from Sam. She let herself in with the key she took. It was only a spare and she knew Josh probably wouldn’t miss it. She went back into his bedroom where she found him in the exact position that she left him in. “I thought you left me. I thought it was just an excuse for you running away.” His voice was broken as if he had started crying again.  
“I would never do that to you. I cleared it with my mom, I’m staying here for a few days.”  
“Where are you going to sleep? The only beds are mine, Hannah’s and Beth’s.” He was quiet.  
“Well, then I’ll sleep in here with you.” It was no secret that when the Washington's had left their son, they left him penniless. The only thing they paid for was his medical bills and medication, in the hopes it would make him better and he would come back to them. But Josh had to eat, he didn’t have a job, or the motivation to get one. So slowly but surely, he gutted the house until the only rooms left with furniture were the kitchen, his bedroom and his sisters’ bedrooms.  
“I guess I could sleep on the floor.” He would feel awkward with her in his bed. It was a double but it had books and papers on it that he would read if he woke up in the night, the last thing he sold was the bookshelf from his bedroom.  
“No, we can make a little room and get cosy. No biggie.” She smiled, and suddenly he felt better. She moved some of the books onto a pile on the floor. “But first, if we’re going to fight these delusions, we’re going to need to get you a doctor’s appointment for some new meds. Antidepressants aren’t going to help.”  
“How do you know that I’m on antidepressants?”  
“I googled it.” Truth be told, Sam had known that Josh wasn’t okay ever since he made the decision to stay in the house while his parents moved away. She saw the bottle of pills on his desk hidden haphazardly behind a book every time she had visited him. She did google it, but not a few moments ago like Josh had assumed, more like two months ago. “Can you call Dr Hill and ask for an emergency session?”  
“Yes,”  
“Try and make it for today. I want to go with you.” Josh nodded. He managed to set an appointment for six pm, after the offices close. Dr Hill decided to stay and work late anyway. “My mom made us some lunch. Ham sandwiches.” Sam removed the smaller tupperware box from her bag and set it on the bed between them. 

Six o’clock came and Sam drove Josh to his appointment. “I can drive myself you know.”  
“I know, but you don’t have a car. This is my mom’s car, so hence the me driving.”  
“Come in Mr Washington.” Dr Hill said, unlocking the building’s door. “And you’ve brought a friend. How… nice.” He smiled. “Good to meet you miss…”  
“Sam.” She said briefly.  
“Sam.” Hill smiled. “Do follow me. Will you be sitting in on the session this evening?”  
“Yes, if that is okay with both of you?” Her confidence faltered at the sight of the paintings in the corridor leading to Hill’s office. They were all the same, a barn in a field with a scarecrow in the foreground.  
“Of course.” He opened the door to his office and pulled up a chair for Sam. “So Joshua, tell me, did you do what we discussed in our last session?” Josh nodded. “And how did that go for you?”  
“Well,” He paused. “That’s kinda why we’re here actually.”  
“Go on.” Hill said.  
“I told Sam. She didn’t run away as I feared. She wants to help me. She is going to stay with me for a couple of days, she was actually the one who wanted me to have an appointment now.”  
“And why did you say yes? I know that you do not like me Joshua. I don’t blame you for that. I can come off a little strong, so why did you let her convince you that seeing me twice in one week could be good?”  
“Because she’s important to me.” He glanced at Sam who was staring intently at the doctor.  
“And, presumably, that is the reason that you told her and not one of your other friends.”  
“Of course.”  
“Then what about Chris. He is also important to you, is he not?” This started to sound like an interrogation.  
“Yes, of course.”  
“Then, why did you pick her?” Hill began to raise his voice.  
“I told you, she’s important.”  
“Why her?” He was practically shouting.  
“She’s important!” Josh shouted back.  
“WHY HER?”  
“I LOVE HER.” Sam gasped.  
“Now we’re making progress. Honesty is good Joshua. Remember that. Honesty is good.” Hill seemed calm, not like a man who just forced out a love confession. Sam was stuck in her chair. She was shocked and wanted to leave, but another part of her was calm and knew. She didn’t know what to do.  
“I think I’m going to wait in the car.” She said before getting up and walking out. She had a magazine in the car that she could read and just clear her head.  
“Sam, wait.” Josh said getting up.  
“Just let her think that over Joshua. She’ll realize it’s a good thing, if she doesn’t she’s not worth the trouble. Let’s get back to this, shall we?” Josh nodded sitting back in his chair. “Why is the real reason you’re here?”  
“To get different meds. The ones I have are antidepressants, they don’t help with the hallucinations.”  
“You can’t have different medication.”  
“What? Can’t you at least do an evaluation or something, you’re always doing evaluations.”  
“You don’t take your medication as it is.”  
“Maybe I would take it if it actually worked.”  
“Maybe it would work if you actually took it. Have you even tried these new ones?” Josh stayed quiet. “No, that’s what I thought. I prescribed them because I thought they would work. Try them for two months, if they don’t work I’ll prescribe you something different. But you have to take them twice a day, every day. Do you hear?”  
“Yes.”  
“If you miss even one, our deal is off. You stay on them. Start from tonight please. I’ll see you on Tuesday. Have a good night Joshua.”  
“Bye.” He said and then left. 

When he got to the car, Sam was still shocked. “Did he give you new meds at least?” She inquired.  
“No.”  
“Then that was a bust. I think I’m going to sleep in Hannah’s room tonight.” Josh nodded, he understood. Dinner was the chicken and veg that Sam’s mom sent over and a bowl of popcorn. The only TV in the house was in Hannah’s room and it was disconnected, so they watched Die Hard on Sam’s laptop. Afterwards, Sam made Josh take a tablet and get into bed. She went on tumblr on her laptop in Hannah’s room and watched a couple of episodes of Supernatural on Netflix. By the time she got to sleep it was three in the morning. She was woken just an hour later to screaming. She ran into Josh’s room to see him writhing in pain and yelling out for his sisters. She tried to quieten him, and then climbed into the bed next to him. He stopped flailing and yelling and was now hugging her tight and whispering “I’m sorry.” over and over again. Aware of not waking him, Sam ran her fingers through his hair and cradled him close. 

The first one to wake up was Josh, he was confused as to why Sam was in his bed, had she changed her mind. He didn’t want to wake her up, so he slipped out of bed and went downstairs to the kitchen where he had kept the coffee maker. No one he knew drank coffee, except Sam. He made her a coffee and placed it on the desk next to the bed, which she was currently star-fished on. Josh showered and got dressed, just as Sam awoke. “Mmm… coffee.” Without even opening her eyes, she reached for the mug and brought it to her lips.  
“You know, that could’ve been my coffee.” Josh chuckled.  
“One, you hate coffee. Two, you forget, I don’t care. Coffee is coffee. And I sure do love coffee.”  
“Stop saying coffee.”  
“Coffee, coffee, coffee, coffee.” She giggled.  
“So, why are you in my bed?” Sam looked down to realize that what he was saying was in fact true.  
“You had a nightmare. I was just trying to help. You pretty much settled down when I got in next to you.”  
“Oh.”  
“Well anyway, I’m going to take a shower. Take your meds.” Josh nodded and passed her a towel. She left the door slightly ajar just in case he needed anything, or maybe it was because she wanted him to stare. He tried his best, but with no TV, surrounded by books he had already read twice, he was bored out of his mind. 

They spent the day at IHOP and then in the park and then in the library where Josh took out some books on a terrible mining accident that happened in the fifties. He was intrigued. Josh read the books in the car on the way home, at home, next to Sam while she was watching Supernatural, in bed. He was obsessed. Josh couldn’t quite put his finger on why he felt like this was familiar. The book didn’t give a specific year in the 1950’s because the company kept everything hushed up but somehow he knew it was 1952. That night they didn’t mess around, Sam got straight into Josh’s bed and he followed suit awkwardly. “So… uh.”  
“What have you been reading?”  
“A couple of books on this mining accident in the fifties. There were thirty of them trapped in the mines for weeks and only twelve of them were rescued.”  
“That’s horrible.” Sam moved to cuddle close to Josh.  
“Yeah, it’s pretty bad but what’s worse is the survivors had this kind of infection and were transported to the Sanatorium where they infected or killed everyone there. Dozens of people died.”  
“Why are you reading stuff like that?” Sam placed her head on Josh’s chest, eyes heavy with sleep.  
“It seemed familiar.” He whispered. She was asleep before he finished his sentence. He sighed and then allowed himself to drift off too. His sleep was undisturbed, no nightmares. No delusions. Nothing. Just Sam. 

But eventually she had to go home. Like all good things, there had to be an end. “Good morning.” She smiled at Josh.  
“Hey,” He had made her a coffee and got back into bed. He passed her the coffee.  
“Mmm… you are the best. I could kiss you right now.” She looked at him for a second. “But I won’t.”  
“Why not?” He was a little disappointed. Instead of answering, she pressed the coffee mug to her lips.  
“I have to go home Josh.” She was sad about it.  
“What? Why?”  
“My mom said a few days. It’s been a few days. You could come round and she’ll cook breakfast.”  
“No. I’m fine here.” He closed himself off.  
“You have no food, please? For me?” Josh paused. “You could even stay the night. My mom won’t mind and my dad’s never home.”  
“But what about the screaming. I’ll wake your parents up.” He seemed embarrassed with himself.  
“I’m pretty sure my dad’s on a business trip in Italy and my mom doesn’t work at the weekend. Please Josh.”  
“I’ll think about it.”  
“I’m gonna take a bath.”  
“But you said you have to go home.”  
“It’s eight in the morning, she won’t be expecting me before noon.” Sam grabbed her stuff and threw it in her bag. She took some clothes out, her phone and headphones, and a towel and headed for the jacuzzi bath tub. She ran a bath and put some classical music on. “Bubbles or muscle relaxant? Bubbles don’t do anything but are nice to look at.” She chose bubbles and soaked in the bath. ‘Suite no.1 prelude in G major’ by Johann Bach was her favorite to listen to. She closed her eyes and embraced the music with her ears. She agreed with Josh’s unspoken words, they were better together. She had trouble sleeping and it didn’t matter if she was on her laptop or not, she usually got to sleep around three. But with Josh, she didn’t need to take her sleeping pills, she got to sleep very quickly. It was extremely unusual for her and she wanted to see if it was a coincidence and she was just having a very good day or if it was Josh. 

The door opened but she didn’t hear it. Josh stood looking at her from behind. She still had her eyes closed. He stripped down and stepped into the bath. Sam removed one of her ear buds. “Did you want something?”  
“Only to conserve water.” He smirked. “After all, I am paying for it and I have no job. There’s a speaker system behind you, plug your phone in and share with the class.”  
“I’m so glad I chose bubbles.” She muttered. Johann Bach played throughout the bathroom. Sam closed her eyes again and lent her head back, enjoying the calm. Josh had forgotten that she was a university student and had classes, but she’s skipped them for him. She asked a friend to take notes for her. “I could find you a job if you wanted.”  
“What?”  
“There’s a couple of jobs hiring at the university.”  
“Oh crap.You’re meant to be-“ Sam nodded.  
“It doesn’t matter though. You’re important to me.” She winked.  
“Why, Samantha, is that your way of saying I love you?”  
“No, I believe that it’s your way, Joshua.” She laughed. She moved over to him, their faces were an inch apart. Sam looked at Josh’s lips and Josh looked into Sam’s eyes, unsure of where this was going. They were so close now, Josh could lean forward and put his whole friendship on the line or he could wait to see what Sam was going to do. Sam looked up into Josh’s eyes and reached behind him for his phone. “Your phone is ringing.” She whispered. Oh. She made her way to the speaker system the other side of the jacuzzi bath and paused the music while Josh answered.  
“Hello?”  
“Hello, am I speaking to Joshua Washington?” A strange voice asked.  
“Yes, you are. What is this concerning?” It was a male voice.  
“Your parents are selling the house. You will need to vacate the property with all of your belongings in the next 72 hours. Anything you leave in the house with get dumped.”  
“You’re kidding me. This is some kind of ridiculous prank. Chris? Buddy? Nice one. You really had me going there for a second.”  
“I’m sorry sir but this is no prank. Call your parents if you don’t believe me.”  
“That’s funny because if you really worked for my parents you would know that they never answer my calls.”  
“I’m sorry sir.”  
“No, you’re serious?”  
“I’m afraid so. You have 72 hours. Goodbye.” He hung up.  
“What the fuck?” Josh placed his phone on the side of the bath where it was before.  
“What happened?” Sam asked, moving closer.  
“They’re selling the house. Those dicks. They know how much it means to me, it’s not like they can’t afford it. They’re not paying for it, I bet my dad just wants more money for his fucking film business.”  
“How long have you got?” Sam asked carefully.  
“Three days. Anything left in the house is gone.”  
“I have to make a phone call.” Sam stepped out of the bath and grabbed the towel, wrapping it around herself. Her family wasn’t quite rich enough to buy Josh’s house but she had a plan. She stepped into Josh’s bedroom, shutting the door so he couldn’t hear. She didn't want to get his hopes up. “Mom?”  
“Hi honey. Are you coming home today?”  
“Yes, I have a favor.”  
“Sure, what is it?”  
“Josh’s parents are selling his house. He had three days to move everything out, but there’s not much left anyway. I was wondering if he could stay with us until he get’s an apartment or something?”  
“Can’t his parents just buy him a place to live? They’re a very wealthy family, the Washington’s.”  
“Remember I told you that when he refused to go and live with them in the other house, they stopped paying for him except his medical bills. He barely eats. He’s sold almost all of the furniture in the house just to stay alive.”  
“Okay honey, just temporarily though. And we can’t take all of his furniture, we don’t have the room in the house.”  
“We can sell the kitchen and use the money for storage for Hannah and Beth’s bedrooms. I know he’ll never give those up.”  
“I’ll make some lunch in a bit and you too can come over an eat before you start packing.”  
“Okay mom, thank you.”  
“I love you.”  
“I love you too.” Sam hung up. 

Dr Hill walked through the door and crouched next to Josh. “What’s happened?” He asked.  
“My parents know that having their bedrooms near helps me, they know. They know, so why are they being huge dicks about it?” Josh couldn’t tell if he was upset or angry.  
“Soon you’re going to be homeless, and Sam’s not going to want you if you don’t have anywhere to live.” Hill spat.  
“No, she will. She’ll want me. I don’t care if I have to get ten jobs. Sam will want me.”  
“She’ll never want you. You are being stupid, haven’t I told you before. None of your friends want you. That’s why they haven’t come to visit you in months. They think you’re crazy. They think you’re better off dead.”  
“No. That’s not true.” But Josh wasn’t convinced at his own words. “It’s not.” Dr Hill stood up and started to walk out of the door. “Is it?”

Sam walked back into the bathroom to find Josh crying into the bath. She sat on the edge of it and pulled his head into her lap. “Everything’s going to be okay.” She explained the plan to him and then they dried off. Sam changed into http://ak2.polyvoreimg.com/cgi/img-set/cid/88841353/id/7BmTDpgFRnS-5ny3vSeWQw/size/y.jpg a boho style outfit, while Josh wore https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/44/95/35/4495353499f88e66efd1b8384904e630.jpg his favorite gray look. They walked to Sam’s house where her mother had prepared a feast fit for a kingdom, let alone a king. Sam thought it was probably because of what she said about Josh not having much to eat. 

There was chicken wings, whole chicken, crispy duck salad, normal salad, stir fry, steaks, fish, calamari, pizza, spaghetti carbonara, you name it it was there. Sam was confused. “Why is there so much food?”  
“I’m having some people over in a bit, the pizzas and salads are for you.” Sam’s mom was still in the kitchen, believe it or not, baking a cake. “And after the guests leave you can have some of this for dinner. Josh I’ll make up a guest room for you in a bit.”  
“Thank you, I’m very grateful.”  
“I’ve got to go and pick up my sister from the airport. Sam, if the timer goes off on the oven, can you take the cake out and put it on the side.”  
“Sure, is Aunt Marissa staying long?” Sam said taking the pizzas and the salad into the kitchen. She placed them on the breakfast bar and grabbed a soda.  
“A week or two, she’s looking over the divorce papers at the minute.”  
“Her and Uncle Joey are getting divorced?” Sam was shocked, they were the happiest couple that she knew.  
“No, sweetie. Your father and I are.”  
“What? How come you didn’t tell me before?”  
“I didn’t have the heart.”  
“What happened?” Sam didn’t want to know, she already kind of knew. She really didn’t want conformation.  
“As you well know, your father has had a lot of business trips recently.”  
“Oh no.”  
“And he always takes his assistant, Charity, with him.”  
“Not the blonde bimbo who works in his office!” Sam was outraged, she knew what was coming.  
“And they’ve been having an affair. It makes it easier that you’re over eighteen so you don’t have to pick. I think that would destroy your father. But Marissa’s handling the case which is why she’s coming over for a bit.”  
“You know I would pick you. Always you.” Sam hugged her mother, she kissed the top of Sam’s head.  
“I know. I’m heading out. When I get back, you kids can take the car and some boxes from the garage and start to pack up the house. I love you.”  
“I love you too, mom.” Her mom left and Sam turned to Josh. “What would you like to drink?”  
“You wanna talk about it?”  
“No,”  
“Then I’ll take a soda.”  
“Here.” Sam passed him one and they sat at the breakfast bar eating lunch.  
“Am I really going to sleep alone tonight?” Josh asked once they had finished.  
“No, I’ll come into you when it’s safe. With two grown adults in the house, it might be an hour or two. But I’ll come into your room.” Sam said with utter confidence that it would work. She tidied up the counter and removed the cake from the oven. 

It wasn’t long before Sam’s mom and aunt returned. “Sammy, you’ve gotten pretty, and I absolutely adore all this jewelry you have on, you look so fashionable. So hip.” Marissa hugged Sam. “And who is this handsome gentleman you have?”  
“I’m Josh.” He stood up and shook Marissa’s hand.  
“Little Joshua Washington. I remember you now. When I lived here, I remember you couldn’t keep your hands off our Sammy and she couldn’t keep her hands off of you either.” He blushed.  
“You can take the car now, Sam. We’ll see you two later.” Sam’s mom said.  
“Thank you, I love you.” Sam replied, taking the keys from her.  
“I love you too.”  
“Leaving so soon, I wanted to have a chat with Joshua here.” Marissa said.  
“They’re coming back later. Josh is staying with us for a while.”  
“Oh how nice.” Sam and Josh left in the car with some boxes and packing tape. Box by box, they cleared out Hannah and Beth’s rooms, occasionally finding something of Sam’s in Hannah’s room or something of Josh’s. It was eight pm before they had finished boxing everything up. They weren’t planning to get a storage facility until the day after, so they left the boxes in the rooms.  
“Do you wanna grab some of your stuff to bring to mine?” Sam asked.  
“Yeah, can do.” Josh walked into his room and pulled out the suitcase from under the bed. It was the one he used when he threatened to leave home, it never left the house. Sam sat on his bed while Josh opened his closet and placed most of the clothes inside the suitcase. He also grabbed his wash stuff, his phone and charger, his laptop, his meds and the library books. “I’ll get the rest of the stuff tomorrow.” It didn’t all fit in the one suitcase, no matter how big it was. He carried the suitcase down and they locked the house up. Josh put the case in the trunk and then they drove back to Sam’s. 

True to her word, Sam’s mother had leftovers for dinner which went down well. Marissa continued to question Josh and his intentions with her niece. Sam found the whole thing hilarious. They all watched TV for a while; the latest episode of CSI: New York. 

It was midnight before Sam heard the last door close down the hall, she had been waiting ages, just itching to be next to Josh. She silently stepped out of bed and opened the door into the corridor. She looked both ways and then snuck down the hallway. Just as she was about to open Josh’s bedroom door, she heard a cough behind her. Sam turned. It was Marissa. “Where are you going at this time of night?” Sam thought for a moment.  
“I can’t sleep,” She said truthfully.  
“And you think Josh’ll be awake?” Yes.  
“No, I left my sleeping pills in his bag from yesterday. I’ll be in and out, I promise.”  
“Okay, but if I don’t hear your door open and close, I’ll be telling your mother.”  
“Okay, Aunt Marissa. I love you.” She smiled and then opened Josh’s door quietly, even though she knew he would be awake it was to keep up the facade.  
“Goodnight Sam.” Marissa said and then Sam heard her door close.  
“Josh?” Sam said.  
“Yeah, what’s up?” He sat up in the bed.  
“We have to go into my room. Marissa’s expecting my door to open and close in a minute.”  
“Okay.” Josh got up and quietly followed Sam. Sam opened her door normally and then closed it when they were inside.  
“Goodnight.” She called to Marissa. She heard a muffled ‘Goodnight’ back. It was risky because Marissa was right next door but if it gets her to sleep and stops Josh from screaming in the night it would be worth it. Problem was, Sam’s bed was a single. “We can spoon or something. It’ll work. I promise.” No matter how many times she said ‘I promise’ she always meant it. She squashed Josh up against the wall and then hopped in bed next to him. He was the big spoon. Josh nestled his face in Sam’s hair and they were out like lights.  
“Morning,”  
“Hmm… morning.” Josh replied, thinking the first voice was Sam. It wasn’t. It was her mother. Josh opened his eyes and sat up with a start. He woke Sam up in the process. She smiled.  
“What’re you doing?” Sam whispered.  
“Wake up.” Josh said.  
“What if I don’t wanna.” She giggled, she covered her eyes with her hands.  
“Trust me, you’ll want to.” He said.  
“Fine.” Sam sat up and opened her eyes. “Fuck.” She said immediately.  
“I’m not going to say anything. I just hope nothing happened, but I know that you’re old enough to make decisions. I just thought that breakfast in bed would be nice.” Sam’s mom handed Sam a tray and picked up the tray from the floor, handing it to Josh. “I would’ve put it on the one tray if I’d realized. Will you be having lunch here or are you going to be too busy?”  
“We’ll come back for lunch. Thank you.” Sam said, blushing.  
“You know, Josh’s room has a queen sized bed, why’d you pick the single?” Her mom asked.  
“Aunt Marissa heard me and I had to think on my toes, but that was the original plan.” Sam replied.  
“Aunt Marissa heard what?” Marissa appeared in the doorway. “My God.”  
“Sorry.” Sam said. Josh was probably the most embarrassed one, his ears were turning pink.  
“Okay, we’ll see you later.” Sam’s mom said, closing the door.  
“Oh my God. That was horrible.” Sam lent into Josh and they both put their tray at the end of the bed. He held her on the bed for a moment.  
“Don’t let it get to you too much. At least we weren’t naked.” Josh whispered and Sam chuckled. They ate breakfast in the quiet, leaning against the wall. “Do you think we have your mom’s blessing? She did say you’re old enough to make your own decisions, or something like that?”  
“I think so. She even practically offered up the queen bed in your room.”  
“We are almost twenty-one now.” Josh said while licking the jam off his toast.  
“Not like you act like it.”  
“I’m gonna take a shower, where are the towels?” Josh asked.  
“In the bathroom, under the sink.”  
“Thanks.” Josh went back to his room and grabbed some clothes. He walked into the bathroom and grabbed a towel, placing it on the toilet seat. He undressed, leaving his pajamas in a mess on the floor. Josh pulled back the curtain, ran the taps and stepped into the shower. Soon enough it was steamed up. Sam opened the door quietly and shut it behind her. She knew that Josh wouldn’t be able to see her until it was too late. She took her pajamas off and climbed in the shower behind him. “What are you doing?!” He was so confused, bless him.  
“Conserving water.” Sam said back with a straight face.  
“But that was different, there was space to move and there were bubbles.” He was panicked.  
“I’ll take a step back, and you don’t look down then.”  
“Fine.” There was a pause.  
“Hey, Josh?”  
“Yes?”  
“Could you pass me the shampoo?” Josh grabbed the shampoo and turned round to give it to Sam. Before he did, he accidentally looked down.  
“Hey, what did I say about looking-“ Before she could finished, Josh had pushed her to the wall and was furiously making out with her. 

There was a knock at the door and it opened. Sam’s mom had seen Sam go in but not Josh. “Honey?” Sam pushed Josh off of her and peeked around the curtain to look at her mother. “I’m really sorry to intrude but have you seen Josh? I wanted to ask him something.”  
“Umm… yes actually I have.” Sam replied awkwardly.  
“Well, where is he? I can’t find him.” Her mom said. Josh poked his head from around the other side of the curtain.  
“Hello ma’am.” Josh said sheepishly.  
“Oh! Oh! Uhh… Josh. And Sam. Josh and Sam.” She was shocked to say the least.  
“What was it you wanted to ask him mom?” Confidence exuded Sam.  
“My husband, soon to be ex, has a storage facility about an hour’s drive from here. He’s paid for it in advance for six months but is moving to Hawaii with his new plaything once the divorce is settled and won’t be needing it. I asked for it for you.”  
“Thank you. Thank you so much. That would be great.”  
“I’ll send Sam the directions and then you two can take the stuff there. He cleared it out last night.”  
“Thank you.”  
“Well, I’ll just leave you too be. You should really lock the bathroom door.” Sam’s mom said before she left.  
“That’s a good idea.” Sam said. She stepped out of the shower and locked the door, then stepped back in. “Now, where were we?” She pulled Josh towards her and they continued to make out. 

Eventually they dried off and got dressed. Josh was mesmerized by every single thing Sam did. They drove over to Josh’s house and he called a guy he knows. “Hey, Anwar.”  
“Josh, what’s up?”  
“I have a full kitchen to sell, gotta be today.”  
“Same address?”  
“Yep,”  
“See you in forty minutes.”  
“Bye.” The call ended.  
“So, you getting your friend to buy the kitchen?” Sam asked.  
“Yeah, Anwar does the best deal. No one better.”  
“Cool. Should we put everything in the car then?” Josh nodded and then Sam followed him up the stairs. They were finished by the time Anwar showed up. He wanted the kitchen and gave Josh a sizable amount. Josh helped Anwar take the counters and cooker out to the van while Sam wandered around upstairs. She found a ladder for the attic. When she went up there, she found photo album upon photo album. There was one for each Washington child, birth to age fifteen. One of their friends and a whole box full of ones of the parents and relatives. Sam placed the first four in her bag and brought the box down the ladder. She took the packing tape from yesterday and taped the box up. And, being as handy as she is, she took a sharpie out of her bag and wrote the Washington’s new address on it. She knew that Josh wouldn’t want it, but maybe he’d want to look at the other four. 

Anwar left, and Josh locked up the house. There was nothing left. When Sam brought up the box, he agreed and Sam walked back to her house with it, no use taking it all the way to the storage facility only to bring it back. She left it in the hallway and then went back to meet Josh by the car full of his sister’s belongings. They made it to the storage facility in good timing and were introduced to the owner who gave them Sam’s dad’s key. It was to unit 4, one of the biggest units on site. Sam had no idea what her dad used it for, probably as an alibi or something. One by one, they placed the boxes in the unit and then locked it up again. Sam’s dad was paranoid, he had a double locking system, but it just made Josh feel better, anything that did that was good in Sam’s books. They went home and Sam got someone to send the parcel. 

That night, Sam’s mom didn’t say anything when Sam disappeared into Josh’s room. They changed into their pajamas and climbed into bed. Josh pulled Sam close to him and rested an arm over her. “I think you’re helping keep me me.” Josh whispered in her ear.  
“I’ll let you into a little secret.” She turned to look at Josh. “You’ve been taking the meds, and they’re working. It’s got nothing to do with me.” But Sam knew that she doesn’t have to take her sleeping pills anymore because of him.


End file.
